This specification relates to transactions for goods and services.
Individuals can enter into transactions with merchants, such as business entities that provide goods and services. For example, a person may start the day buying coffee at a coffee shop, have lunch at a pizza place, and stop at the dry cleaners on the way home from work. Each transaction can be made with a respective merchant using the merchant's accepted payment methods. While such transactions are discrete, creating systems and mechanisms to facilitate a more user friendly (as opposed to merchant friendly) buying process may encourage individuals to conduct more business. For example, if all (or a significant portion of) transactions of a customer were able to be processed through a central entity, the entity could provide better service from a user perspective. For example, the entity may be able to offer better perks (discounts, coupons, or other incentives) which may benefit both the customer and the merchants.
Mobile devices make it possible for users to stay connected while they are away from home or work. For example, a user with a smartphone can access the Web from virtually anywhere (i.e., within the limits of the cellular phone system). Given the ubiquitous nature of mobile devices in society today, taking advantage of the capabilities of the devices in a transaction process may provide benefits to the end user.